Mail-marking machine



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

H. E. WAITE.

MAIL MARKING MACHINE.

Patented Feb. 22, 1898.

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H. E. WAITE MAIL MARKING MACHINE.

No. 599,483. Patented Feb. 22, 1898!.

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litrrnn fi'ra'rns Parent @nrrem HENRY E. WAITE, OF NEWTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

MAIL MARKING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 599,483, dated February 22, 1898.

Application filed A ril 22, 1897.

To all whmn it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY E. WAITE, of Newton, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail-Marking Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mail-marking machines employing automatic means for feed ing the letters, one at a time, to marking devices, which convey an impression or postmark to the surface of the letter.

The invention has for its object to provide improved mechanism for timing and feeding the mail-pieces to the marking devices in machines of this class; and to this end it consists of the improved construction and relative arrangement of parts, which I shall now proceed to describe and claim.

Of the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure 1 represents a top plan view of a mail-marking machine embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 represents a top plan view, on a larger scale, of the feed mechanism and the printing-cylinders. Fig. 3 represents a side elevation thereof.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

Referring to the drawings, a designates a table, at one end of which is a hopper, into which the letters are initially placed, one at a time. Of the two sides I) and b of said hopper one side Z) is prolonged to form a guide or fence 5 which guides the letter before and after passing between the printing-cylinders c c. The bottom of the hopper is formed by the upper stretch of an endless belt 61, which conveys the letters forward edgewise toward the timing-feed as they are successively dropped into the hopper. Above said belt are arranged two arms e e, forming a V-shaped guide in the path of the letter to guide the letter to the feeding devices, which will presently be described. The arm e is fixed, while the arm 6 is yieldingly mounted on a pivot e and is provided with a spring 6 which allows the guiding end of the arm to yield more or less, according to the thickness of the letter which passes. When a letter reaches the apex of this \I-shaped guide, it is normally restrained from further movement Serial No. 633,225, (No model.)

until the proper moment for its entrance between the printing-rolls by means of a stop f, consisting of a finger pivotally mounted on the table a at the top of a post f and extending in a diagonal direction across the letterpath. By means of mechanism which will presently be described this stop is normally locked in a letter-obstructing position during the greater portion of a revolution of the printing-cylinders c 0, but is unlocked once in every revolution of said cylinders at the moment of a certain relation between the feeding devices, hereinafter referred to, and the said printing-cylinders, at which moment the letter, if present, will be fed forward and receive its postmark in the proper place.

The locking mechanism for the stop ,1 is constructed and arranged as follows: A cam-slot g operates on a stud or roller mounted at one end of a lever h, which is pivoted at 72. to an arm 2', the latter being itself pivoted at t" to the tablea. A spring j connects a rear extension or heel of said arm with an car a on the table a, in which car is mounted an adj ustable screw-stop 7a, which limits in one direction the motion of the arm 2'. The outer end of the cam-actuated lever h is connected by means of a pivoted link m with a lever 01, which is pivoted at n to the table a. At one end of the link m is a recessed head m, which constitutes one of the locking members by means of which the letter-stop f is locked and unlocked. The other locking member is a complementary head 0, adapted to fit in the recess of the head on and fixed at one end of a pivoted lever p, the other end of which is formed as a finger p. Said finger bears against an elongated finger f attached to the post f of the letter-stop f underneath the table a and adapted to move with said stop. A spring 19 attached to a stud underneath the table and to a projection 12 of the lever 29, exerts a tension which normally keeps the stop f in the path of the letters. The looking members m and 0' are normally in line with each other, as shown in Fig. 2, but are out of line when a letter is passing the feeding devices, (to be described presently,) as shown in Fig. 1. \Vhen in line with each other, they are locked and unlocked at every revolution of the printing-rolls c c by the action of the cam-slot g on the lever h, which causes the member m to be slightly lifted from the member 0 in each revolution of said cam-slot. The cam-slot q is formed in a wheel g,the shaft g of which is geared so as to rotate in equal time with the printing-cylinders c c.

The feeding devices proper are constructed and arranged as follows: On vertical geared shafts r r, on either side of the conveyerbelt (1, are mounted disks r r at some distance apart. These disks are geared with the printing-rolls c 0, so as to rotate in a corresponding direction therewith and in equal times. The disks are preferably mounted in pairs, one disk above the other, the stop f passing between the disks 1' r as shown in Fig. 3, and each is provided with a plunger or button 0*, let into a recess in the edge of the disk and provided with a spring 1 which tends to force the plunger outwardly. Its outward movement is limited by a flange r which abutsagainst a sleeve 1, screwed into the plunger-socket. The disks 0" r are so mounted on their shafts that the two sets of plungers come together and coact in gripping the letter which may be present at the moment when the letter-stop f is unlocked and the printing-rolls c c are in a position to give the letter its postmark at the proper place. The plungers are pushed into their sockets a distance depending on the thickness of the letter,and by their gripping action the letter is advanced a short distance. The stop f yields to accommodate the letter and after the letter has passed returns to its position by the action of the spring 19 The plunger-sockets instead of being sunk radially toward the centers of the disks are set at a slight angle in advance of the radius passing through the end of each plunger, as indicated in the drawings, in order to bring the axes of the plungers in line with each other after said plungers have passed a straight line joining the centers of the two sets of plunger-disks. This is an important feature of my invention and is necessary in order to prevent the plungers from binding against their sockets on their outward throw and consequently losing their grip on the letter before it has been advanced a sufficient distance. The letter having been advanced a small distance by the plungers r is engaged between two feed-rolls, one of which is a metal disk 8, mounted on the shaft 'r below the plunger-disks W, and the other of which is a rubber-shod idler t, mounted on a spring-actuated arm t. The roll .9 has a section of its periphery cut away, the remaining portion being milled or otherwise roughened, so as to firmly grip the letter in conjunction with the roll t.

It will be seen that the timing of the letters departure from the hopper is performed by 'the joint action of the timing-stop f and the The letter timing plungers or buttons r cannot pass the stop f until said stop is unlocked and cannot be advanced until engaged by the plungers, whose special function is to introduce the letter to the feed-rolls s t, by means of which it is advanced to the printing-cylinders.

In practice it may be found desirable to duplicate the feed-rolls s t above the plungerdisks in order to grip the letter in two places and thereby insure a more positive feed.

An adjustable screw-stop f is provided for limiting the movement and taking up backlash of the stop f, caused by wear of the contact-surfaces, and a similar stop t is provided for the roller-carrying arm 25 to limit the motion of the roller t in the direction of the gripping-disk s.

By means of my present invention the varied and exacting requirements imposed upon a mail-marking machine are performed in a far more satisfactory manner than has been possible with machines heretofore devised. The details of construction he'rein disclosed may be variously modified without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim 1. In a mail-marking machine the combination with feeding devices and a movable carrier, of a flexible stop normally in the path of the mail-pieces, and means for locking and unlocking said stop at predetermined times.

2. In a mail-marking machine the combina tion with rotary printing devices and a feeding mechanism, of a flexible stop normally in the path of the mail-pieces, and means for locking and unlocking said stop once in every rotation of the printing devices.

3. In a mail-markin g machine, in combination rotary printing devices, rotary feeding devices adapted to rotate in equal times with said printing devices, a flexible stop normally in the path of the mail-pieces, and means for locking and unlocking said stop once in every rotation of said printing and feeding devices.

4. In a mail-marki ng machine the combination with feeding devices a stop and an endless conveyer adapted to advance the mailpieces to said feeding devices, of means independent of the stop for guiding said mailpieces toward the feeding devices, said means comprising two converging arms arranged in the path of the mail-pieces, one of said arms being fixed, and the other being pivotally mounted, and adapted to be displaced only by the mail-pieces.

5. In a mail-marking machine,the combination with a flexible stop normally in the path of the mail-pieces, of two shafts, one arranged on each side of said path, rotary feeding members on said shafts having relatively short carrying-surfaces for starting a mail-piece past said stop, and means for further advancing said mail-piece comprising a rotary member mounted on one of said shafts and driven thereby, and having a relatively long carrying-surface, and a member adapted to coact with the last said member.

6. In a mail-marking machine,the combination with a flexible stop normally extending across the path of the mail-pieces, of a feeding mechanism comprising rotary members having sockets, spring-pressed plungers in said sockets adapted to coact in gripping a mail-piece to start the same past said stop, and means for further advancing said mailpieces.

7. In a mail-marking machine,the combination of rotary members having sockets angularly disposed for the purposes specified, spring-pressed timing'plungers in said sockets adapted to coact in gripping a mail-piece and advancing the same a relatively short distance, a gripping-disk arranged below one of said members and on the same shaft there- With,the said disk having a relatively long segmental carrying-surface, a yieldingly-mounted idler-disk coactin g with said gripping-disk, a flexible stop arranged in the path of the mail-pieces, and means for locking and unlocking said stop once in every revolution of said timing-plungers.

8. In a mail-marking machine,the combination With a flexible stop normally extending across the path of the mail-pieces, of a feeding mechanism comprising rotary members having sockets angularly disposed for the purpose specified, spring-pressed plnngers in said sockets adapted to coact in gripping a mailpiece to start the same past said stop, and means for further advancing said mail-piece.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses, this 7th day of April, A. D. 1897.

HENRY E. WAITE.

Vitnesses:

ROBERT M. PIERSON, M. B. MAY. 

